Chapter 10, Molecular Biology Summary and Analysis

The 1950s brought about the revolution of molecular biology; but this produced a crisis in classical genetics, opening the door to another revolution. Many were concerned about the concept of a gene. Chromosomal studies flourished in the '40s, and many were convinced that genes were real, but the '50s brought the very concept into question. Geneticists did not even understand what a mutation was. During this conflict, McClintock's work on transposition was welcome. The '50s brought a re-examination of McClintock's work. Geneticists began to focus on bacterial DNA; the gene became less mysterious over time, understood as a genuine molecular object. Many sciences converged to bring this about - biochemistry, microbiology, X-ray crystallography and physics. This led to the creation of molecular biology, which began with enormous enthusiasm, with the prospect of 'explaining life'...